Sandeep 's World >> Thru' The Lens

Away from the Crowd

Fri, 5 Mar 2010 20:26:08 +0530

I was in Kannur last week for Rajesh's wedding (see 'Birthday Bash') and headed to Parassinikkadavu snake park for a quick visit. It was almost 5.30 by the time we reached there and the shadows were lengthening. Snakes and animals kept in the cages were almost impossible to shoot at that light and I quickly headed to the center of the park, which has a well where a lot of snakes (mainly rat snakes) are kept:

Even though the top portion of the well was open, the light inside was very low. Also, I needed atleast a medium telephoto to take a close shot - so I settled for the Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L (macro) lens. Even at ISO-800 I was getting a very high exposure time - and I finally settled down for manual mode, f/3.5, 1/50s and ISO-800. With the camera supported by the wall around the well, I was able to take this shot.

There was another corner of the well, where the sunlight was falling through a gap. And this fellow was right there, away from the crowd, enjoying the last few minutes of sunshine. I used the same 180mm lens and clicked - this time the light was a lot better. In Av mode, f/3.5, ISO-800, with a -1 exposure compensation, the camera reported a 1/500s exposure.

The Red Caps

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 20:05:26 +0530

Spotted these two at the construction site opposite our office building. We visited them as part of an initiative from Lakshmi - our HR manager - to distribute cloths and food items to them. Ofcourse, I was the official photographer ;-)

The pic is shot with the Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L (macro) les, handheld in Av mode, f/3.5 and ISO-200 for a 1/200s exposure.

Our little Champ!

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:17:27 +0530

Nowadays half of my clicks are of the same subject :) For people who could not guess what the subject is - go here. Only reason, why I dont post more pics of Abhimaan aka Manu (after 'Happy Onam from the little one', 'Mom and Son' and 'Welcome 2010!') is fear of repetition! Anyways, yesterday I realized that I have not posted any of his pics for some time now. So, here I go:

This pic is taken on the new year day and a framed version of this picture adorns our living room now :) It is clicked using the Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L (macro) lens, handheld in manual mode, f/5.6, 1/250s and ISO-400. I had a Vivitar 285 HV bouncing off the ceiling as is common with most of my recent indoor portrait pics :) I am glad I bought that strobe.

The 2nd pic is clicked a week ago, when he completed 6 months. The time is really flying by and the tiny baby is now a naughty toddler :) This shot is now my desktop wallpaper and makes me smile during the tiring work hours :) The pic is again clicked with the Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L (macro) lens, aided with the Vivitar 285HV bounced from the ceiling. The camera was set in manual mode, f/3.5, 1/250s and ISO-800. In comparison to the earlier picture, I was looking for a fuller frame and was further away from him. The flash being on-camera, the light output was lesser due to the distance and I needed a higher ISO and wider shutter (also to blur the background better).

Needless to say, I am enjoying these clicks and I hope you all would like it too!

Birthday Bash

Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:27:01 +0530

One of the mandatory things for a birthday bash is a cake facial - preferably with a very creamy chocolate cake :) What do you say?

Here is my friend Rajesh, all excited after his birthday bash and ready to welcome a new year! Rajesh is getting married next week and let me also wish him and Nithya a wonderful married life.

The pic is taken using a Canon EF-s 55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS lens, handheld in manual mode, f/4, ISO-100 and 1/60s exposure. Thanks to Tiju for lending this lens to me for trying out. I quite liked its focal range and a more than useful IS. For the relatively lower price, this lens is more than handy.

Rajesh was at his balcony when I took this shot and the clean black background comes from the dark surroundings - as it was quite late in the night. I used a Vivitar 285HV strobe on camera, bounced from the roof to make up for the lack of light. The pic is unedited, except for the resizing and addition of the watermark.

Day Break

Sat, 20 Feb 2010 18:13:57 +0530

Rooster's crowing at the break of dawn is a romantic idea that was used by many poets. The experts say that they crow as much during any other time of the day!

We were on our way to Siddarabetta, just past Dobbaspet, when we saw the sun rising to our right side. I kept driving for some more time looking for something to frame the sun with and spottedthis handsome bird perched at the top of a haystack. The pic is taken with the Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L tele photo lens, handheld, in Av mode, f/6.3, ISO-100 for a 1/1000s exposure.

The Sunset Couple!

Tue, 9 Feb 2010 11:01:27 +0530

These two were sitting outside the Bannerghatta national park as we were walking towards the parking lot. I dont know if they are a real life couple, but the sun was surely setting when I took this shot :)

The pic is taken with the Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L (macro) lens, handheld in Av mode, f/6.3, ISO-400. I used a -1 Ev exposure compensation, since the light was not that good. Even with the exposure compensation, the exposure time was 1/160s, slightly lower than ideal.

Bubbles for Sale

Thu, 04 Feb 2010 01:20:19 +0530

I saw this lady as soon as we got out of the van, after the grand safari at Bannerghatta:

I quickly changed the lens to Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L (macro) lens and started shooting. Only later I realized that I forgot to change the settings chosen for the 400mm f/5.6, which was Av mode, f/6.3, and high ISO-800 for a 1/500s exposure. I should have switched to ISO-200 or so and used a wider shutter for a lower DoF. Nevertheless, I liked what I got!

His Majesty!

Sun, 31 Jan 2010 14:21:06 +0530

The easiest way to see wild-life without a zoo-like cage around them, around Bangalore, is in Bannerghatta. Though, it is nothing like spotting them in the wild, the animals are left here to roam around in a small compound with some vegetation. And yes ... hopefully they are fed well and looks healthy.

Look at his menacing eyes! No wonder, he is called the king of beasts!

The pic comes from the Canon EF 400mm f/5.6L telephoto lens, handheld in Av mode, f/6.3, ISO-400 and 1/500s exposure.

Rose Rose!

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 21:51:06 +0530

This is one more picture from Leela Palace, Bengaluru, where we had a team get together:

The rose was kept on a table, with the dark night outside giving me the perfect black background. The picture is taken with the Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L macro lens, mounted on a Manfrotto 728B Digi tripod. In the first trial, the camera's metering system got it completely wrong and horribly over-exposed. Switching to partial metering mode didnt help either. So, I finally moved to the full manual mode and used ISO-100, f/8 and a 3.2 second exposure.

Yet another Stack

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 12:42:18 +0530

This time it is a stack of glassware from Leela palace, Bengaluru, where we had a team dinner:

The pic is shot with the Canon EF 180mm f/3.5L lens mounted on the Manfrotto 728B Digi tripod. I used the Av mode, with ISO-100, f/8 for a 1s exposure.